Trial reportThe ocular surface2020
The Dry Eye Assessment and Management (DREAM) extension study - A randomized clinical trial of withdrawal of supplementation with omega-3 fatty acid in patients with dry eye disease.
Trial report in The ocular surface, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02128763 (Dry Eye Assessment and Management Study), which is not on this map. Cited by 24 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Dry Eye Assessment and Management Study
Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The effects of different forms of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids on dry eye disease resulting from various etiologies: a meta-analysis and systematic review.BMC ophthalmology · 2026Pooled it
- Transformative applications of oculomics-based AI approaches in the management of systemic diseases: A systematic review.Journal of advanced research · 2025Pooled it
- British Society for Rheumatology guideline on management of adult and juvenile onset Sjögren disease.Rheumatology (Oxford, England) · 2025Guideline
- Topical Omega-3 Fatty Acids Eyedrops in the Treatment of Dry Eye and Ocular Surface Disease: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Pooled it
- Placebo administration for dry eye disease: a level I evidence based systematic review and meta-analysis.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2022Pooled it
- Omega-3 and omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids for dry eye disease.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019Pooled it
- Intereye Agreement in Dry-Eye Signs in the DREAM Study: Implications for Future Dry-Eye Trials.Cornea · 2025Trial
- Pharmacological, Natural and Emerging Therapies for Meibomian Gland Dysfunction: A Review.Drugs · 2026Review
- Environmental Drivers of Dry Eye Disease: A Narrative Review of Pollutants, Climate, and Indoor Exposures with Practice Recommendations.Ophthalmology and therapy · 2026Review
- Diagnostic methods for managing dry eyes.World journal of methodology · 2025Article
- Translating Biomarker Discovery: From Bench to Bedside in Dry Eye Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Insight: A Multi-Modal Diagnostic Pipeline using LLMs for Ocular Surface Disease Diagnosis.Medical image computing and computer-assisted intervention : MICCAI ... International Conference on Medical Image Computing and Computer-Assisted Intervention · 2024Article
- Enhancing Meibography Image Analysis Through Artificial Intelligence-Driven Quantification and Standardization for Dry Eye Research.Translational vision science & technology · 2024Article
- Living with your biome: how the bacterial microbiome impacts ocular surface health and disease.Expert review of ophthalmology · 2024Article
- Efficacy of Omega-3 Intake in Managing Dry Eye Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Journal of clinical medicine · 2023Review
- Possible Strategies to Mitigate Placebo or Vehicle Response in Dry Eye Disease Trials: A Narrative Review.Ophthalmology and therapy · 2023Review
- NLRP3 Inflammasome as a Potential Therapeutic Target in Dry Eye Disease.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
- Type 1-type 2 interferon imbalance in dry eye disease.Indian journal of ophthalmology · 2023Observational
- A comparative review of evaporative dry eye disease and meibomian gland dysfunction in dogs and humans.Veterinary ophthalmology · 2023Review
- Polymorphisms in Lymphotoxin-Alpha as the "Missing Link" in Prognosticating Favourable Response to Omega-3 Supplementation for Dry Eye Disease: A Narrative Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeTo determine effects of continued or discontinued use of omega-3 (ω3) fatty acid supplements through a randomized withdrawal trial among patients assigned to ω3 supplements in the first year of the DREAM study.
methodsPatients who were initially assigned to ω3 (3000 mg) for 12 months in the primary trial were randomized 1:1 to ω3 active supplements or placebos (refined olive oil) for 12 more months. The primary outcome was change in the Ocular Surface Disease Index (OSDI) score. Secondary outcomes included change in conjunctival staining, corneal staining, tear break-up time, Schirmer test, and adverse events.
resultsAmong 22 patients assigned to ω3 and 21 to placebo supplements, the mean change in OSDI score between month 12 and 24 was similar between treatment groups (mean difference in change -0.6 points, 95% confidence interval [CI], (-10.7, 9.5), p = 0.91). There were no significant differences between groups in mean change in conjunctival staining (difference in mean change -0.5 points; 95% CI (-1.2, 0.3)), corneal staining (-0.3 points; 95% CI (-1.2, 0.3)), tear break-up time (-0.8 s; 95% CI (-2.6, 0.9)) and Schirmer test (0.6 mm, 95% CI (-2.0, 3.2)). Rates of adverse events were similar in both groups.
conclusionAmong patients who received ω3 supplements for 12 months in the primary trial, those discontinuing use of ω3 for an additional 12 months did not have significantly worse outcomes compared to those who continued use of ω3. ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT02128763.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.